Fender Passport P150 Portable Sound System

Feature:
Basic dynamic microphone included with the Passport...plus basic speaker wire. Not top end, but then you're not buying this as a Bose or Mackie system, are you?... This system is reliable -- you need it, it'll be there. The only downside really is the effects side -- the reverb leaves something to be desired...so I use outboard equipment for that.

Quality:
Generally, pretty good quality. It's made for ease of operation. Unit comes apart and goes together easy enough.

Value:
I'd be hard-pressed to find a mixer/amp/speaker combo for what I paid for this (at a competitior as a B-Stock). I'd looked at Dawn's system ($400 and 46 pounds) as well as the other Passport line-up. I just couldn't say no to the deal I found on the 150.

Desirability:
Ease of setup and tear-down, ease of operation...that's attractive to the novice or solo performer. It's light -- easy to transport in anything from a Yugo to a van. Expandable via outboard mixer... Just remember that it's only 75 watts per channel...150 watts total, so it's not LOUD!

Sound:
Good reproduction... Hey, it's only 75 watts per channel, so don't expect to shake windows with it. But it does a good job! I routinely plug my Mackie DFX12 mixer into two channels of my Passport to expand the mix and the Passport takes all this in stride.

Support:
So far, so good!

Overall:
Not a bad little setup overall...and yes, if I were to lose it, I'd likely get another. For the price, it's not a bad option. If you really want name and performace features, look to Mackie or Bose. This is your basic package -- and as such, it delivers!

Feature:
The reverb is useless, just terrible. I'd also love to have direct outs so I run it to a house P.A., but you need to go up a model or two for that. On the plus side, the competing Yamaha P.A. has no panning! You can't run stereo keyboards into it and get the kind of dimension you get from the Fender. I'm telling you, if you're playing your stereo keyboards through a mono amp, you really can't hear what you're missing--but I've heard it, and it's a hoot! Leslie simulations sound far more interesing and realistic in stereo, as do pianos and Rhodes and almost everything else. The Fender makes it easy.

Quality:
I feel like the supplied speaker cable is pretty cheap, and as I said I wish it all looked less like Sony's "My First P.A. System!" But still--the sound, the stereo and the convenience beats the competitors.

Desirability:
This is a tough one, because I really don't like the way it looks. But...I still want it! ;)

Sound:
This was a big surprise to me. I am a professional musician playing jazz/rock in small clubs, house concerts with a dynamic drummer and acoustic (amplified) bassist. I see a lot of positive comments here about the looks--I think it looks like a toy, but that just made the great sound even more impressive to me. This pat week, I tried out (in my home with my Roland VR 760 cracnking away) a Motion Sound KP100S ($650), a Yamaha Stage P.A. ($545) and two powered Yamaha speakers (combined $750), trying to top the Fender. I would LOVE to find something that sounded like this but looked more expensive, but no such luck. THe bass on the Fender was much better than any of these systems--not earth-shattering, but clean and solid. And it really shines on the bell-like qualities of a good Rhodes sample. I promise you, I would have bought one of these other systems this week had they sounded as good as the Fender. They just didn't.

Support:
No idea.